Obama condemns shooting as an ‘act of terror’

Barack Obama has said Americans must decide ‘what kind of country we want to be’ after the deadliest shooting in US history.

The US president condemned the Orlando nightclub massacre, which left 50 people dead, as an ‘act of terror and an act of hate.’

‘The shooter was apparently armed with a handgun and a powerful assault rifle,’ he told reporters.

‘This massacre is a further reminder of how easy it is for someone to get their hands on a weapon that lets them shoot people in a school, or in a house of worship, or in a movie theatre, or in a nightclub.

‘We have to decide if that is the kind of country we want to be.

‘To actively do nothing is a decision as well,’ he added.

Armed with a device thought to be a bomb, an assault rifle and a handgun, the gunman, identified as 29-year-old Omar Mateen, opened fire in the gay nightclub Pulse in the early hours of Sunday morning.

He took a number of hostages, prompting a three-hour stand-off with officers before SWAT teams stormed the building and shot him dead.

Barack Obama has said Americans must decide 'what kind of country we want to be' after the deadliest shooting in US history.
The US president condemned the Orlando nightclub massacre, which left 50 people dead, as an 'act of terror and an act of hate.'
'The shooter was apparently armed with...